Heater



Aug- 8, i939. H. T. BELLAMY 2,368,758

HEATER AND BURNER THEREPOR Aug. 8, 1939. H. T. BELLAMY HEATER AND BURNER THEREFOR A GN, @7W OM, Nm 7\\ 4 H 4 r H w 6 4/, O H 4// M 9 x m OH 4 @A f, Hm 3 im i on, om, V V O O G 2 4\ T KQ L 5 4 7 mf y Patented Aug. 8, 1939 unire STATES DATENT OFFICE HEATER AND BURNER THEREFOR Harry T. Bellamy, Evanston, Ill.

Application April 27, 1935, Serial No; 18,502

11 Claims.

This invention relates to heaters, but more especially to broiler burners and to means for mounting and supporting the same. A primary object of the invention is the provision of a heater having a burner of refractory material arranged for the discharge of gas against a radiating area of the burner in such manner as to heat the same to an efficient radiating temperature whereby to convert a substantial amount of the heat to radiant energy.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a burner or refractory material which is adapted to be heated to a relatively high radiating temperature to convert a substantially greater part of the heat to radiant energy than has heretofore been possible.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a heater structure for broiling and simlarl operations'wherein the effective broiling heat isradiated from the body of the burner.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a burner of refractory material having a .gas distributing chamber provided with a plurality of spaced ports and a radiating area located adjacent to the ported area and in a plane such that the tips of the flames are caused to impinge thereagainst at points relatively near the ports, whereby to heat the radiating area to an elevated temperature.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a broiler burner of refractory material arranged for the discharge of gas and primary air across the burner in such manner as to burn against the face of the burner with the hottest portion of the flames impinging against the lower surface thereof to heat the face of the burner te an efficient radiating temperature.

A further object of the invention is the provision of improved means for mounting the burner on a source of gas supply for greater peimanency andV greater facility in the replacement thereof.

`A further object of the invention is the provision of a heater wherein the burners are suspended directly from the gas supply pipes, and improved structure serves to releasably retain the same thereon and seal the junction.

Other objects and attendant advantages will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description and the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a section horizontally through a y broiler showing one manner of mounting the burners therein;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary View partly in section showing the chamber Within the burnerv and the manner of carrying the burner on the fuel'supply plpe;

Fig; 3v is an end View of the burners carried on the fuel supply pipe, one of the burners being shown in elevation andthe other being shown in 5 section;

Fig; 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2, of a preferred embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section through Fig. 4, and

Fig. 6 isl an end view of the burner and fuel 10 supply pipe shown in Fig. 4.

The embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings contemplates a broiler of the type used for cookingv purposes, but it Will beA understood that the-invention isfby no means limited tothis 15 particular embodiment'since'numerou's other uses will at onceY be apparent to those skilled in the art. However, one phase of the invention involvesy theV embodiment of this type of burner in a broiler for cooking purposes', and the invention 20 will be described in connection with this embodiment, wherein the numerals 5', I and Il designate theside'walls of a conventional broiler. Arranged within the broiler, preferably within a single plane, are fuel supply pipes" designated generally 25 bythe numeralsS; II and` I2, through which a mixture of gas and primary airis supplied in the usual manner. Arranged longitudinally' of each of thesupply pipes are-burners of refractory material designated generally by the numerals I3, 30 i4', I'5, etc., as shown in' Figure 1. The burners are longitudinally'spaced on the pipe, preferably so as to allow for the freer movement of air between theF burners.

A feature of the-invention lies in the manner of 35 supporting the burners on' the supply pipe. In theembodiment shown in Figs. 1- to 3 inclusive the supply pipe is provided with a plurality of delivery openings, as indicated at I6. Surrounding these openings are flanges I'I' preferably 40 formed' integrally with the supply pipe, though not necessary integral therewith, since numerous other forms of ilangeswill at once be apparent. In this instance, each of the flanges I'I has a flat face I8 for a purpose presently to be 45 described. Opposite th'edelivery openings I6 the supplyV pipes are provided with openings I9 for snugly receiving a` bolt 2I for a purpose which will presently be apparent.

The burners I3, I4, etc. are formed of refractory materialand are'of elongated shape; in this instance having a flat top 22 provided with a cent-rallyI disposed boss 23A having'a flat upper surface 24, the boss surrounding an opening 25 leading. to a gas chamber 26 within the burner. 55

The boss 23 is adapted to cooperate with the flange |1 when the delivery opening |6 and the opening 25 of the burner are brought into registration. A gasket 21 of non-combustible material, such as asbestos sheet, is interposed between the flange l1 and the boss 23 so as to provide a substantially gas-tight joint between the burner and the pipe. The burner is attached to the pipe by means of the bolt 2| which has a wing nut 28 on the end thereof adapted to bear against the fuel supply pipe. A non-combustible gasket 29 may be interposed between the nut 28 and the fuel supply pipe whenever necessary to prevent the escape of gas along the bolt 2|. A crossbar 3| is carried on the inner end of the bolt 2|, being pivotally attached to the end of the bolt substantially at its center and projecting outwardly therefrom a suicient distance on each side of the bolt so as to engage the upper wall of the chamber 26, as best shown in Fig. 2. It will be seen from this Aconstruction that when the wing nut 28 is tightened, the burner will be drawn against the gasket 21 so as to tighten the joint between the flange |1 and the burner. It will likewise be seen that the gasket 21 provides a certain amount of resiliency between the pipe and the burner so as to allow for a certain amount of expansion and contraction of one member with respect to the other, in which manner the breaking and cracking of the refractory material, common in the past, is eliminated. Furthermore, this mounting greatly facilitates the exchange of burners when the burners become broken or their replacement is necessary for any reason whatever, since it is only necessary to loosen the bolt 2| by turning the nut 28 in order to replace the burner.

The burner is preferably made entirely of refractory material, the shape herein shown being a convenient one and including a fiat top 22, a central chambered portion 32 having the gas chamber 28, the chambered portion and chamber extending longitudinally of the burner, and laterally disposed portions 33 and 34 extending longitudinally of the burner on opposite sides of the central portion 32, the portions 33 and 34 being coplanar. The chambered portion 32 is provided with ported areas 35 and 36, each having a row of ports 31 extending longitudinall5r of the burner. The ported areas preferably slope inwardly from top to bottom theoretically converging at a point somewhat below so as to have a proper directional influence on the'secondary air rising beneath the burner.' The ports 31 are in this instance substantially horizontally disposed and are so proportioned to the gas mixture in the chamber 2E that the gas will burn at the ports in small flames such that substantially the hottest portion of the flames will impinge against the lower surfaces of the portions 33 and 34, the flames licking upward against these surfaces under the influence of the rising air currents. The lower surfaces of the portions 33 and 34 are provided with serrations as shown at 38 providing wedge-shaped points 39 against which the flames issuing from the ports 31 are designed to impinge. These lower surfaces of the portions 33 and 34 provide a radiating area, the points 39 becoming highly heated by the flames and serving to direct the heat radiating from their surfaces downward against the material being treated in the broiler. It will be seen that the flames from the ports 31 first strike the tips 39 of the radiating area, which, being of relatively thin cross-section, tend to be easily heated to a high radiating temperature. Because of the small flames and. the relatively large amount of secondary air provided from below, a greater portion of the gas from each port is burned directly adjacent these tips. However, the small amount of gas which does not so burn is carried on back into the serrations burnirg at a slower rate and thereby building up supplementary heat through the thicker portions of the wedges between the serrations, thereby preventing the heat from being drained away from the tips.

Figs. 4-6, inclusive, show a further and preferred form of the invention, particularly in the means for supporting the burner on the fuel supply pipe. In this form it will be seen that the burners are mounted with their longitudinal axes parallel with the longitudinal axes of the fuel supply pipes, though this is, of course, not essential to the invention and those skilled in the art will perceive that the burners may be mounted either in the position shown in Fig. 4 or any other shown in Figure l. Also, by way of illustration, the burner is shown as being free of the boss 23 shown in Figs. 2 and 3 and with the ports 4| thereof directed downwardly and laterally as best shown in Fig. 5, instead of being directed hori- Zontally in the manner of the ports 31 shown in Fig. 3. Improved means are provided for mounting the burner on the fuel supply pipe which comprises a frame having a top plate 42, end pieces 43, and a bottom guard 44, the burner being positioned within the frame and held thereon by means of screws 45, the heads of which seat in recesses 46 and 41 adjacent an opening 48 adapted to register with an opening 49 in the fuel supply pipe to supply fuel to the chamber 26 of the burner by way of the fuel supply opening 25. The screws 45 thread into a plate 50 within the chamber to clamp the burner against the top plate 42. A gasket 5| of non-combustible material similar to the gasket 21 serves to prevent leakage of gas. A cradle 52 is formed on the top of the frame and is arranged to receive the fuel supply pipe such as the pipe 9, a non-combustible gasket 53 being interposed between the fuel supply pipe and the cradle 52 to prevent the escape of gas at the junction between these two parts. The cradle is pressed against the fuel supply pipe by means of a clamp including an upper curved plate 54 adapted to seat against the top of the fuel supply pipe and carrying bolts 55 and 56 passing through the cradle whereby the cradle 52 and the plate 54 may be drawn together to tighten the cradle against the fuel supply pipe. Screws 51 are threaded in the end pieces 43 and are adapted to be turned up to exert pressure against opposite ends of the refractory burner. Preferably a small cavity is molded into the end of the refractory burner and is subsequently filled with a cement such as an insulating cement which does not set up hard. The end of the set screw is caused to press against this soft filling so as not to crack or break the burner. The purpose of this construction is to maintain a constant pressure on the opposite ends of the radiant burner so that should the burner become broken or cracked, it will be prevented from falling away out of its proper position, and, secondly, so that it will be maintained under such compression that it will not leak gas when cracked. The bottom guard 44 extends between the end pieces 43 and is preferably of lesser width than the lower face of the central chambered portion 32 of the burner so that it in no wise interferes with the action of the burner. This guard serves to prevent mechanical breaking of the burner should somenil thing' be,V forcedupI against thebottom; of the burners. One difficulty with ceramic burners has been thev easewith which they areV broken on mechanicall strain or shock and the rough usage to which they have been frequently put. However, I have found that by providing a guard member such asY shown at 44, a substantial amount of breakage can be eliminated. It will be seen that force' supplied tothe guardi member is transmitted not against thev` burner, but through the end pieces 43v and the top plate 42 directly to the fuel supply pipe so that this force in no wise tends tol disturb orv break the burner positioned within the frame.

As previously set forth, the heater construction is of particular advantage in connection with broilers and other cooking apparatus requiring top heat, but it likewise has a number of industrial applications in those processes requiring top heat. It will be seen that the manner of carrying the burners on the fuel supply pipe eliminates many of the disadvantages of? prior constructions wherein refractory burners have been cemented to the gasA manifolds or other gas supply mechanism. This cement provides a rigid ^and non-yielding joint between the refractory and the pipe or manifold. Since these have different coeicients of expansion they tend to expand and contract differently with varying heat conditions in the broiler or other heating appliance, as a result of which the cement is caused to crack and break, and the joint needs to be frequently patched or` the cement replaced. Through the construction herein disclosed, the refractory is held to thev supply means in such manner that a certain amount of relative movement is permitted between these parts and yet the flow of gas is substantially retained. An-

other advantage of this construction lies in they convenience and speed with which the refractory material may be replaced and the facility with which the structure may be assembled originally. This amounts to a considerable saving in labor costs, both in the original assembly and in the repair of the device. I desire to make it plain that this manner of supporting the refractory on the gas supply means isk in no wise limited to the lspecific form of burner herein disclosed, and may be used on a wide variety of. burners of types known in the art.

The burner construction herein described is of material advantage over those now known to the art because of its greater efficiency in the pro.- vision of top heat. In the past it has been common to provide metal pipes having suitably arranged ports at which the gas has been. burned. Becausey of the lower densityy of the heated gases, they tend te rise vertically upward away from the object tov be heated. In this typev ofv heating most of the heating effect on thev object belowthe burner is brought about by radiant energy, and the type of burner just mentioned producesfonly a relatively small proportion of radiant energy, this energy being substantially that of a blue ame. On the other hand, the burners herein disclosed are so constructed that the flames from the ports impinge at, substantially their hottest part directly against a refractory material, thereby heating the refractory material to an efficient radiating temperature. Dueto the construction and the relative position o-f the ported area and the radiating area, a maximum production of radiant heat is obtained, and this heat is directed downward against the material under treatment. The importance of this feature will be realized when it is understood that broilers of this type when used for cooking operations require for the best results a uniform cooking effect over the entire area of gri-d or other support for the articles of food. However, because of the small amount of radiant heat emitted by the burners of the prior art, it was necessary to place the article of food in close proximity to the burners, When so placed it'was practically impossible to obtain uniform cooking effect over the entirefsurface of the food article so that in the past the food article has been placed at a compromised distance such that by burning an vexcess amount of fuel, the cooking operation could be carried out, though with a considerable degree of irregularity in the cooking effect. On theV other hand, with my improved burner, it is possible to obtain the same cooking effect at the same distance with a material reduction in the amount of fuel consumed, but more important, the food object may be placed at a somewhat greater distance from the burners and a highly uniform cooking effect may be obtained without increasing the fuel consumption, and in'many cases with a decreased fuel consumption because ofthe greater amo-unt of heat converted to radiant energy. The broiler is, therefore, more efficient than those of the past because of the greater uniformity of heat dissipation and' because of the greater amount of the gas energy which isv converted to radiant energy.

Another advantage of this burner construction lies in the fact that the entire burner is heated to a relatively high temperature, whereby any foreign combustible material coming in contact with the burner is consumed and burned away.

This is of particular importance in broilers of the type used for the cooking of meat and similar materials in which the fats spatter up against the burner. In the old type of metal burners the action of this grease and heat causes the ports of the burner to become partially clogged so that it is necessary frequently to ream the ports out. In the case of onewelll known club, it was necessary toy ream the ports once each week. With the burner construction herein disclosed this type of action cannot occur, since the entire burner operates at such a temperature that the grease and other material which strikes thereon is entirely consume-d and burned. Furthermore, when iron burners are operated in such manner that the flames impinge against the metal. surfaces, the higher operating temperature has such a severe action on the iron as to cause rapid deterioration thereof.

While I. have thus described and illustrated sp-ecic embodiments of my invention, I am aware that numerous alterations and changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims, in which- I claim.: v

1. A gas broiler comprising in combination a gas distributing element, a burner frame carried on said element, a bottom burner of ceramic material supported on said frame in communication with said distributing element, said frame having means bearing against opposed ends of the burner to retain the'same in case of mechanical damage, and a guard extending along the face of the burner in spaced relation theretoto protect the same against mechanical damage. y

2. A one-piece burner of molded ceramic material comprising a plate adapted to be retained in a horizontal position and having a depending cored rib extending longitudinally thereof sublil stantially midway between the sides, said rib being provided with longitudinally spaced gas ports arranged to produce a plurality of small blue cone flames, the lower surface of said plate on opposed sides of said rib having a plurality of wedgelike projections extending laterally outward from the rib with the edges of said projections in the vertical planes of said ports.

3. A gas broiler comprising a gas` distributor element having a plurality of delivery openings and a plurality of closely spaced bottom burners of ceramic material secured across said openings, said burners comprising a plate-'likle member adapted to be retained in a horizontal position and having a depending rib extending longitudinally thereof, said rib being provided with longitudinally spaced gas ports arranged to produce a plurality of small blue cone flames, the lower surface of said plate on the side of said rib having a plurality of projections extending laterally outward from the rib in the vertical planes of said ports for impingement of the flames.

4. A gas broiler comprising enclosing side walls, a gas distributor element horizontally disposed therein having a plurality of delivery openings and a plurality of closely spaced bottom burners of ceramic material secured across said openings, the burners being so spaced as to permit the passage of waste gases therebetween, said burners having a longitudinally disposed manifold area provided in a plurality of longitudinally spaced ports for producing small flames and a relatively narrow bottom surface above and to one side of said manifold area, the spacing of said bottom surface and the size of said ports being shaped to produce impingement of said flames against the bottom surface at substantially the tip of the flame cone to heat said bottom surface to a radiant temperature, said bottom surface having wedge-like ribs extending transversely of said bottom surface in the path of said flames.

5. A gas broiler comprising enclosing side walls, a gas distributing element horizontally disposed therein having a plurality of delivery openings, a plurality of closely spaced bottom burners of ceramic material carried on said element for the reception of gas through said delivery openings, said burners having a longitudinally extending depending portion forming a ported area provided with a plurality of longitudinally spaced ports for producing small flames and a portion forming a radiant area extending along the side of said depending portion and above the plane of said ports for impingement by the flames from said ports at substantially the tip of the cones, said radiant area having portions of reduced crosssection arranged in the path of the flames to be heated thereby and having recesses for conducting burned gases to the edge of said radiant area, and releasable means for securing said burners to said gas distributing element.

6. A radiant burner comprising a body of ceramic material having a ported portion for producing a plurality of relatively small flames and a portion forming a radiant area positioned above and to one side of the ported area for impingement of the tips of the flames, said area having ribs extending from adjacent each port to the edge of the radiant area for contact of the tip of said flame and providing portions intermediate said ribs for the passage of burned gases.

7. A radiant burner comprising a body of ceramic vmaterial including a ported portion provided With a plurality of coplanar spaced horizontally disposed ports for producing small flames and a horizontally disposed portion forming a radiant area projecting from one side of said ported portion in a plane spaced above the plane of said ports, said horizontally disposed portion having a plurality of ribs formed thereon and extending laterally of said area in the path of said flames, said ribs being spaced from the ports for impingement of the tips of said flames thereagainst under the influence of secondary air, said horizontally disposed areaalso having recesses between said ribs for conducting the products of combustion away from the ribs.

8. A gas broiler comprising in combination a gas distributing element, a burner frame suspended from said element, a burner of ceramic material supported on said frame in communication with said distributing element and having a bottom burner surface, said frame having a bottom guard extending along the bottom of the burner exteriorly thereof and in spaced relation thereto to prevent an object from being forced thereagainst from below.

9. A burner comprising a one-piece body of molded ceramic material including a plate adapted to be retained in a horizontal position and having a depending cored rib extending longitudinally thereof substantially midway between the sides, said rib being provided with longitudinally spaced gas ports arranged to produce a plurality of small blue cone flames, the lower surface of said plate on opposed sides of said rib having a plurality of wedge-like projections extending laterally outward from the rib with the edges of said projections in the vertical planes of said ports, and a frame for said body including means bearing against opposed ends of the body and metal members connecting said end means to retain the parts of the body together in case of breakage or mechanical damage thereto,

10. A gas broiler comprising enclosing side walls, a gas distributing element having a plurality of delivery openings, burners of ceramic material depending from said element at said openings in numbers suicient to cover a greater part of the cross-sectional area of said enclosure, and means for fastening said burners across said delivery opening, said burners having a downwardly directed portion forming a radiating area and a manifold portion extending longitudinally along the center thereof and having a plurality of small gas openings for producing a plurality of small bottom flames for heating said area to a radiating temperature.

11. A one-piece radiant burner comprising an elongated body of ceramic material having a longitudinal chamber, a plurality of ports distributed longitudinally of the body for producing small flames, and a horizontally disposed portion forming a radiant area of relatively narrow width positioned in the path of the flames for impingement of the flames thereagainst to heat the radiant area to an elevated radiating temperature, said area having bottom recesses for conducting the products of combustion away from the flames.

HARRY T. BELLAMY. 

